Encino

Trainer Brad Cox's outfit was like a hen on a June bug towards the end of Keeneland's 'Fall Stars' meet and subsequently kept pouncing on wins at Churchill, Horseshoe Indy and Aqueduct as the calendar flipped to the more autumn-like weather of November. Louisville's favorite son collected 20 winner's circle visits across 61 starts from Oct. 21 on, which included a Hit Show (Candy Ride {Arg}) playlist in the GIII Hagyard Fayette Stakes, an Oaks points deposit for Life of Joy (Gun Runner) in the Rags to Riches Stakes and...

The royal blue of Godolphin continued to build on a banner year for the operation as Encino (Nyquist) proved too much for his Presque Isle Mile Stakes competition. Placed in the Mar. 22 GIII Twinspires Kentucky Cup Classic Stakes, and the winner of last season's GIII Stonestreet Lexington Stakes, Encino won the Listed Jonathan B. Schuster Memorial Stakes two back July 5 and hit the board last out Aug. 2 in the KY Downs Preview Mint Millions Turf Mile Stakes at Ellis Park. Supported here to the tune of 3-5...

Now a winner from six furlongs to 1 3/16 miles, Awesome Aaron continued his positive trend for trainer Norm Casse with an off-the-pace upset in the GIII Pimlico Special Stakes. After a career spent at nearly every level of racing, the 6-year-old gelded son of Practical Joke proved his 5 3/4-length roll in an allowance/optional claimer at Oaklawn last time out was no fluke (nor was the 104 Beyer Speed Figure that accompanied it). That win on Apple Blossom day Apr. 12, his first since getting claimed for $40,000 at...

After starting his career with two daylight wins at Gulfstream Park and Churchill Downs last year on GI Florida Derby Day and GI Kentucky Derby Day, respectively, 'TDN Rising Star' Mindframe (Constitution) nearly pulled off victory in the GI Belmont Stakes in only his third career start, finishing just a half-length behind Dornoch (Good Magic), and then finishing second to that same rival in the GI Haskell Stakes. Sent to the sidelines with bone bruising after those four scintillating starts, the Repole Stable and St. Elias Stables runner made his...

5th-Fair Grounds, $59,170, Alw (NW3$X)/Opt. Clm ($80,000), 1-16, 4yo/up, 1 1/16m, 1:45.59, gd, 1 length. ENCINO (c, 4, Nyquist--Glittering Jewel, by Bernardini), a late scratch from last year's GI Kentucky Derby, was sidelined since capturing the GIII Stonestreet Lexington Stakes at Keeneland Apr. 13. He was backed as the 1-9 favorite in this return while facing just three rivals. He was sent to the front by Florent Geroux, led through fractions of :23.71 and :47.21, and, after some anxious moments in the stretch, dug down gamely to hold Accretive (Practical...

According to a post on the 1/ST Racing feed on X, racing at Santa Anita Park has been canceled for both Saturday and Sunday. After some internal discussions on Friday, it was decided that live racing--including Saturday's California Cup stakes and Sunday's GIII Las Cienegas Stakes--would go on as planned. The post from 1/ST Racing references 'the overnight changes on the west side of LA.' According to a story from the Los Angeles Times, the Palisades fire can now be seen from the San Fernando Valley and a flare-up of...

10th-Churchill Downs, $123,375, Msw, 9-29, 2yo, f, 6f, 1:11.35, ft, 3/4 length. SOUK PLAZA (f, 2, Street Boss--Glittering Jewel, by Bernardini) debuted as the even-money favorite here but was slow from the gate and had to settle back off the pace as Nancy Lynn (Justify) put up a quick :21.85 opening quarter. Still mid pack but making steady progress through the field into the far turn, the homebred fanned out to the grandstand side with a quarter to run and wore down 10-1 longshot Banking Silver (Liam's Map) to get...

LOUISVILLE, KY--Having not attended the Kentucky Derby since American Pharoah won in 2015, I was reminded of why it's really worth the trip. Yes, one has to deal with the logistics. Limited parking, long walks to get to your destination, excessively priced hotels and car rentals, in addition to the singular hope that a Kentucky Derby Day ticket might miraculously have fallen into your hands. It's probably hard for some to understand just how many people converge in Louisville at the same time, creating something of a controlled chaos. The...

Godolphin homebred Encino (Nyquist), winner of the GIII Stonestreet Lexington S. at Keeneland Apr. 13, has been scratched from Saturday's GI Kentucky Derby. Trainer Brad Cox said that Encino will not run in the Kentucky Derby after being off after training Tuesday morning. Also-eligible Epic Ride (Blame), a longshot third for trainer John Ennis while making his dirt debut in the GI Toyota Blue Grass S. at Keeneland Apr. 6, will draw into the field. Encino will not run in the @KentuckyDerby per trainer Brad Cox. Also-eligible Epic Ride draws...

GI Blue Grass S. winner Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) led a total of nine GI Kentucky Derby hopefuls on the work tab a week out from the Run for the Roses. Breezing in company with stablemate and fellow Derby hopeful Domestic Product (Practical Joke), the pair went five furlongs in 1:00.20 (15/58) through splits of :13, :24.80, :36.40 before galloping out in 1:13.20 and 1:26.20. "It [the work] was executed perfectly," said Chad Brown, the trainer for both workers. "I wanted them to a good five-eighths out in three-quarters but...

With Derby week just around the corner, the morning work tab under the Twin Spires was chock full of participants Wednesday, but one Derby entry went further than the others. Susumu Fujita's undefeated Forever Young (Jpn) (Real Steel {Jpn}) worked six furlongs in 1:19.60 over a fast track. With jockey Ryusei Sakai aboard, the colt posted fractions of :14.80, :28.80, :42.60, :55.20, 1:19.60 and out seven furlongs in 1:33,60. He was joined for the last half-mile by Cuffed Candy (Candy Ride {Arg}), an unraced 3-year-old for trainer Dale Romans. "Thanks...

His contentious prohibition from Churchill penalizes many others besides Bob Baffert and his loyal patrons. A shot at the GI Kentucky Derby, once-in-a-lifetime for most, is also being denied to everyone else with a stake in his horses' development, from those on duty at the foaling shed to the pre-trainer to the feed company. And, of course, there's nothing like a Derby winner to market a stallion. As things have turned out, a setback means that Nyquist would have lost the services of Nysos even had he moved to another...